Gabrielle Bernstein: How to stay on the healthy path you’ve chosen

Often, spiritually guided, inspired moments in our lives end up being just…moments.

In other words, despite your excellent intentions, you cleanse and then go right back to eating office cupcakes. You work out for a month and then stop moving at all. You plan to cut off a toxic relationship and then, in a moment of weakness, text that person you know is bad for you.

Why? The truth is that living a healthy, miraculous life—with vitality and grace—requires real commitment and a practice. Without it, even your most soul-directed intentions may falter.

The right tools make these moments more of a mindset and allow you to live your good intentions. Try these tips and practices that I created and use all the time.

1. Practice radical forgiveness.

When we slip up, we often enter a cycle of guilt that sabotages our progress even more. What if you could learn to forgive yourself on the spot? Forgiveness is a choice you make. In an instant, you can shift from self-hatred and attack to self-love and compassion. Your simple decision to choose to forgive yourself will open the floodgates for peace to set in. Next time you judge yourself for falling off the healthy wagon, simply say, “I choose to forgive myself now.” Then relax into that commitment and let forgiveness take over. Watch the video now.

2. “When in doubt, play it out.”

It’s easy to forget about the long-term consequences of small choices, especially when temptation (say, a jumbo frosted cupcake) is right in front of you. Instead of summoning every ounce of willpower to resist the urge, remember: When in doubt, play it out. That’s right. Play out the entire story from start to finish. You pick up the cupcake and eat the whole thing; then, in the heat of the moment, you eat another. Fifteen minutes later, you have a sugar headache that stays with you until the following morning when you feel hung over from the cupcake binge.

Whatever the issue, if you take the time to play out the entire scenario, you’ll be able to talk yourself out of making a mistake. The key is to think your way through the whole story. Not just the fun part where you get a sugar high off of the cupcake. Play the story all the way through to the end when you crash and burn. Your honesty and willingness to remember what is real will save you when you want to relapse into old behavior. This tool isn’t just for sugary temptations. Use it whenever you find yourself enchanted by something that ultimately is not good for you. Watch the video now.

3. Do you have permission-giving thoughts?

Do you give yourself permission to do things that you know should be out of bounds for you? Whether it’s downing that extra drink, buying that dress on your maxed-out credit card, or eating fast food, giving yourself the go-ahead ultimately leads to bigger failures. Here’s how to flip that logic: Stop giving yourself permission to partake in the negative behavior. If you make a commitment to yourself that you no longer partake in that activity—“I don’t drink”—then you won’t wind up drunk on a Friday night when you wanted to stay sober. Each time you choose not to give yourself permission to do something negative, you make it easier to do something positive. Making good on your good intentions is a miracle. Watch the video now.

I created this toolkit for the “Summer of Miracles” lecture I co-hosted with Well+Good NYC. The Kundalini yoga master Yogi Bhajan says, “There’s a way through every block.” And the strategies and meditations I share in this lecturewill help you learn to find the ways that work for you. —Gabrielle Bernstein